Book talk with acclaimed author and journalist Andrew Lam upon the publication of his latest collection, Stories From The Edge Of The Sea

Andrew Lam. Andrew Lam is a Vietnamese American author and journalist born in 1964 in South Vietnam as Lâm Quang Dũng. The son of General Lâm Quang Thi of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam, he lived a privileged life in Đà Lạt, attending Lycée Yersin, until his family fled during the fall of Saigon in 1975 when he was 11. They resettled in California, where Lam initially pursued biochemistry at UC Berkeley but switched to creative writing at San Francisco State University, abandoning plans for medical school. Lam’s writing focuses on the Vietnamese diaspora, exploring themes of identity, exile, cultural hybridity, and the American Dream. His notable works include Perfume Dreams: Reflections on the Vietnamese Diaspora (2005), a collection of essays that won the 2006 PEN Open Book Award, delving into his personal struggles as a Viet Kieu (Vietnamese living abroad) and the war’s lasting impact. East Eats West: Writing in Two Hemispheres (2010), essays examining cultural intersections and globalization, named a Top 10 Indie by Shelf Unbound Magazine. Birds of Paradise Lost (2013), a short story collection about Vietnamese immigrants in the San Francisco Bay Area, was a finalist for the California Book Award and won the Josephine Miles Award for fiction. Stories from the Edge of the Sea (2025), his latest collection of short stories exploring longing, immigration, and generational memory, was praised for its poignant and universal narratives. As a journalist, Lam began writing for Pacific News Service while in school, earning the 1993 Outstanding Young Journalist Award from the Society of Professional Journalists. He co-founded New America Media, served as its web editor until 2017, and was a commentator on NPR’s All Things Considered for eight years. He has also contributed to Huffington Post and lectured at over 40 universities and institutions like the Asia Society and Smithsonian Institution. Lam’s work is celebrated for its poetic yet honest style, blending memoir, fiction, and cultural critique. His stories and essays bridge East and West, offering insights into the Vietnamese American experience while addressing universal themes of loss, belonging, and resilience. He has spoken about how his writing, often in English, has helped second-generation Vietnamese Americans connect with their parents’ refugee experiences, fostering intergenerational dialogue. Lam splits his time between the U.S. and Saigon, where he continues to write and research.